The D-Rob Saga comes to a close

So, are you folks ready to roll with Jacques Reeves, two nice 2nd year talents in Glover Quin and Brice McCain, two huge ‘?s’ in Fred Bennett and Antwaun Molden, and draft choice(s) X and/or Y?? Are you amped about what that group can do for the Texans in 2010? I hope so because, with Wednesday’s news that the Texans will let Dunta Robinson make his exit, that’s what we’re looking at as of this entry.

We can assume there might be a lower level veteran free agent CB signing to bolster the secondary as well. I mention a lower level signing because if they were going to spend serious money on a free agent CB, I would think it should have been Dunta. He is generally regarded among NFL observers as the best unrestricted free agent CB that will be available on the market. The Texans could have held on to Robinson by designating him their franchise player for a second year, either to retain his services in 2010 or to seek value in trade for another team’s procuring those services. Of course, that would have cost owner Bob McNair something on the order of $12 million. Instead, the Houston Texans chose to let their best cornerback walk out the door and into a FA market on March 5th that ESPN’s Adam Schefter predicts will be “robust” for D-Rob. By the way, the team stands a chance of receiving nothing (zero, zilch, zip, nada, the empty set) in return for such a commodity. Maybe they’ll receive a compensatory draft pick, but that would not be awarded until the 2011 NFL Draft, if at all.

Yes, your Texans have elected to let Dunta walk, with virtually no return on their six-year investment in him, in a year when there likely will be no salary cap to limit most teams’ spending in free agency. They’re a higher revenue team in an uncapped year, and the Texans begin this off-season with their least amount of current salary obligations for players under contract of the last several. A year in which they just gave their Head Coach a hotly debated new contract through 2012 and also raised the price of admission yet again. The Texans enter this season with Playoff expectations considered a given, and their achieving anything less will be considered complete failure in most corners of the football universe. And they do so having just jettisoned one of the more compelling players ever to have worn the Texans uniform in their brief existence.

My immediate reaction:Uhhh boy

Now I know many Texans Fans have seen this news and think that the Texans made the right move… the best move for their immediate and longer-term future. Some feel that Dunta wasn’t very good at CB last year and can easily be replaced and/or upgraded… maybe even by one of the players already in house. Others may have been perturbed by Robinson’s act last year – his brash protest at being franchised and his holdout deep into training camp, which definitely hurt the team. They now contend that he’s not a ‘team player’ and doesn’t have the value that D-Rob would claim he has to this franchise. Then many Fans have lost all concern for Robinson, with zero tolerance for his “Pay me, Rick” shoe stunt to open the season… especially after a brutal season/home-opening loss to the NY Jets, and with him on the books for nearly $10MM for one season. Many such Fans will be saying, “good riddance,” upon seeing or hearing the reports.

I’ve made it clear on this here FanBlog that I am NOT among that group of Fans. Personally, I think many fans gave Dunta a bad rap for his off-field actions last season. Thus they overstate his negative plays and underrate his importance to the team. D-Rob made a number of impact plays last season, but not many talk about those. Why? Because he wanted a long term deal, shot his mouth off and decided to sit out camp? Okay, granted, that was certainly not a smart play by Dunta. However, it did come after he busted his tail in a rehabilitation program most of us couldn’t even imagine to come back early from the devastating leg injury that had put his career in serious jeopardy in the first place. And most of his teammates loved him for that and for how he played once he did join them. For instance, our rising star LB, Brian Cushing, mentioned Dunta right along with DeMeco Ryans among his mentors on the team. Guys like Bernard Pollard, Eric Winson and Ryans still brought up D-Rob as one of the tone setters for the team. His Head Coach, Gary Kubiak, still spoke of Dunta as one of the leaders and key players on this team and a guy he counted on throughout the contract squabble and during the season.

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Dunta Robinson is certainly not one of the top-5 CBs in the NFL but, in my humble opinion, he was the best, most complete defensive back the Texans had on their roster. They are not a better team today without #23 in the mix. Say what you will, but Dunta covered the opposition’s top target every week for 16 weeks and did so respectably more often than not. Though some will disagree with that statement, if you ask me, they would be wrong. He got beat some, sure… badly a few times even. That happens to the best of them. Dunta was also penalized more than almost any DB in the League in ’09, and that was definitely a big concern going forward considering the dollars involved in keeping him. I’ve seen all the “advanced statistics” on the web for Robinson’s performance, so I don’t need those rattled off to me. I watched the games. Dunta Robinson was one of the keys to the Texans D down the stretch of the season, and his play was on an upswing to end the season.

What if keeping D-Rob is the difference between the D continuing to improve as it did through the 2nd half of the season or going through another early season adjustment phase that could cost the Texans another Playoff appearance?? I wonder if Mr. McNair would spend that $12MM if we knew that was case. Well, we’ll never know, and it doesn’t much matter now that the die is cast. I might be off base, but I think the uncapped year presented the Texans a unique opportunity to keep Dunta while they continued to develop the talent behind him and secure an eventual replacement. Heck, it’s not my money. Plus, look at the possible savings they could have by not necessarily paying Owen Daniels, Bernard Pollard, Rashad Butler, and other similar RFAs ‘what they are actually worth’. It’s about looking at the whole picture in my mind, and that picture looked better with Dunta Robinson in it. How can we as Fans truly determine a player’s value in this type of environment anyway? As I mentioned in a response last entry: A player is worth what the market dictates at that moment in time. I concur with many pundits that Dunta is the top FA corner on the market this year. Regardless what Texans Fans think and despite the economic uncertainty around the NFL, there are teams willing to pay him accordinigly. Yet the Texans let Robinson walk without anything to show for his time in Houston except the money they decided not to spend on him. I believe there was a better resolution to be made of the situation for both sides. Still, I ride with my team and hope for the best in their decisions going forward. It surely will be interesting to see the rest of this off-season’s developments, as if we weren’t tuned-in to the fullest already.

I do have some major questions though:

* Will the Texans wisely spend some of those salary savings on D-Rob elsewhere, possibly with a significant free agent addition?

* Does the added salary space mean DeMeco finally gets the new contract that we all know he rightly deserves?

* Will the Texans invest more to finally get their pass-rush where it needs to be and help out that Dunta-less secondary?

* How drastically does this development alter the team’s approach to the 2010 Draft, if at all?

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I must say, I wonder how we’ll all feel when we see Robinson’s #23 (or whatever number) making plays for another team this season. And make no mistake, he WILL be making big plays for some team in 2010. Maybe we’ll see him somewhere along the road. Might that come in the Playoffs? Maybe he’ll be lined up across from our boys for the Redskins, or maybe even the Cowboys this season. What if it’s the Titans?? Lemme guess… you’re thinking, ‘Throw it right at him!!’ That may very well be the move, but how about when they run a WR hitch or a wide zone play and D-Rob knocks one of his former teammate’s you know what in the dirt? Hmmmmm…

So how do YOU feel about the news, Texans Fans?

I’ve written plenty on the topic, and we have a bunch of new fodder for discussion with this latest development. We’re looking for your takes on the situation. What are your thoughts now that the first big off-season domino has dropped for the hometown squad? What possible courses of action do you see the Texans taking in light of Dunta Robinson’s departure? Let us know what you’re thinkin’!

66 Responses

I’m admittedly nervous about it. I don’t think he’s worth top 5 money, and I can understand not spending money simply because it’s an uncapped year but I worry about Rick Smith and his reasoning. Possibly he’s just being a judicious GM with Dunta and OD and all the rest. With the labor issues and the possibility of a lock out next year, it’s hard to discern whether or not he’s acting in the best interest of the team or he’s allowing personal feelings get in the way. Some misconceived sense of toughness could very easily destroy everything built thus far and set us back several years. Having said that, his eye for personnel has been pretty good and maybe he, and presumably Kubiak and Bush, think they have young corners that are the answer. I’m fine taking a wait and attitude, but I’ll admit, I’m beginning to worry.

Yeah, I share your concerns, Will. I’ll give Smithiak the benefit of the doubt, in that I don’t know what exactly their plans are for the secondary. That stated, I’m really not feeling too positive about their letting Dunta just skate off in this manner. -BigRon

If they had franchised him, and then traded him, would the Texans have been on the hook financially for something? I just don’t understand why they didn’t try to get an extra draft pick or two for him. Did other teams know that he would likely not be franchised and they could just pick him up as a FA, so there was no trade market for him?

I agree with not paying him like a “premier” CB, but I am having trouble understanding the economics of not just trading him.

It’s my understanding that if the Texans had franchise tagged Dunta and subsequently traded him, then the team that acquired him would assume the responsibility for the salary guaranteed under the tag or for renegotiating a new deal. The Texans would, in turn, assume control of any draft picks or player contracts they received in the transaction. This is what happened when New England traded Matt Cassel and LB Mike Vrabel for a high 2nd round pick. It’s certainly a different circumstance with Dunta, as Cassel was a QB with what was viewed as a lot of potential (similar to Matt Schaub) and not a 28 y/o CB with an injury history. However, NE didn’t hold KC’s feet to the fire for compensation and were able to turn that tag move into a valuable draft pick. That case was one of my biggest reasons in support of tagging D-Rob once more. I felt pretty strongly that they could have at least got a 3rd round pick or a contributing player for him. Now we’ll never know what Dunta could’ve fetched in a trade or if the Texans could have done something similar to what the Pats pulled off. Oh well. -BigRon

Now that the Texans have decided not to tag Dunta’ I would be happy to see us get Rolle as it would give us one less hole we have to worry about in the draft and Rolle is an impact player. The main drawback is that I really think Earl Thomas is exactly what the Texans need at FS with his overall and closing speed as well as his all-around pass coverage skills.

If the freakin Texans had just franchised Dunta’ we wouldn’t now have our backs against the wall. The only thing I can see is that the team expects to go after a free agent CB or one in the 1st round but why not just tag Dunta’ and remove the tag if we find an adequate replacement? Now the team is desperate for secondary help. If Dunta’ is really going to get as much as everyone says he is in free agency then surely the Texans could have tagged him and at least received a 3rd round pick for him….

I think the only hope for getting Earl Thomas in the draft is if the team signs a CB in free agency whether it is a nickel back or a starter. I can’t imagine the team going into the season with a rookie at FS and a rookie 2nd rounder as the nickel back to a 2nd year guy and another guy who is solid but sometimes shaky. I’m very disappointed in managements decision.

As we have discussed before, we are starting to see some guys get cut that would not have been cut in a capped year. Ya’ll informed me it would happen mainly before the draft because roster bonus’ are due now but, nevertheless, guys are being cut that are quality players. Would anyone have expected Antrel Rolle to be cut? Maybe this is why the team is letting Dunta’ walk but if there is no penalty for franchising a guy then removing the tag later I just cannot understand why we didn’t do that.

With Amano signed it is not looking good but maybe there will be a big name that is cut like Rolle apparently is going to be. Either way the Texans absolutely have to sign a starter at least one of the following positions but hopefully two: OG/C, DT, CB, RB and FS. I’d rather not see us sign a RB and don’t want to sign a FS unless it is a stud because Wilson is adequate and there is the possibility of Thomas in the draft.

I reposted this comment from last entry since it was relevant in this thread also. I agree with most, if not all, of what you wrote here, Todd. Good points. I’m really curious what the brass has up it’s collective sleve after today’s news. -BigRon

They analyze ever player, every snap, of every game. Jacques Reeves was by far the most consistent DB we had. DR was consistently below league average in coverage and run support but completely atrocious when it came to committing penalties. Of the 107 corners in the league who saw at least 25% of their team’s defensive snaps, Dunta ranked 98. 98 out of 107.

Not worth top 5 money? Please, that’s easy. While I agree that the Texans don’t have a strong secondary, to say that losing Dunta is going to make a big impact in performance is way overstating it.

And, yes, I saw where you said that you’ve seen all the ‘advanced statistics’. So apparently all that matters is what? Your gut? How else can we analyze it? If you don’t have an objective way to analyze this kind of stuff you end up making decisions based on emotion and human perception that is way too susceptible to things like confirmation bias.

Well alrighty then. No, my gut is certainly NOT all that matters. And actually, can we leave my gut out of this discussion, please?? I haven’t been much for my ab workouts lately. Haha. Before I get further into my response, I want to be sure that you know I appreciate your posting this comment, fracguru.

Okay, first off, the statement you quoted, as indicated, is my own personal opinion based on my own careful observation. I am very familiar with ProFootballFocus, FootballOutsiders, and the like. Have you really taken a good, close look at the very list of those 107 CBs you cite, among which Dunta is supposedly ranked 98th? Well, I definitely have. Look at some of the 97 names ahead of D-Rob on the list. Neither you nor some statistician is going to convince me that they were all better, more reliable CBs in ’09 or looking at ’10. Also, consider that most starting NFL corners play well over 25% of their teams’ snaps in a given year if they’re healthy, which is part of the equation. How about if we amp up the qualification in your post to, say, 60% of the snaps on D? That cuts the list almost in half. Dunta still qualifies and while he does rank lower than you’d like to see, POOF.. no more Jacques Reeves. Glover Quin still shows up and his ranking is higher than Robinson’s (35th::50th of 57 total CBs). However, another issue I have with this type of evaluation is there’s no accounting in these rankings, regardess of playing time, for what caliber of WR each of those CBs is facing. Switch Glover Quin onto a Reggie Wayne instead of Austin Collie (as was the match-up v. IND), and how would those statistics differ? Could ProFootballFocus tell us that? Can it tell us about any intangible qualities Dunta may possess in comparison to Reeves, Quin, or any other options from outside the organization? Even before considering those questions – which are certainly legitimate, lets amp that snap qualification up once more to 75%. Dunta still qualifies, along with 40 other CBs, but no other Houston Texans remain on the list to compare. Now, I acknowledge that if we were to evaluate Dunta Robinson’s value solely by the metrics put forth by advanced statistics sites, he does not stack up very well at all. BUT, I think you should also acknowledge that statistics do not show a complete measure of a player’s value. This is exactly why I am NOT the kind of fan who looks at sites like ProFootballFocus or FootballOutsiders as some kind of end all-be all determiner of players’ skills. I have my doubts as to how clear of a picture these sites paint and how infallible they are. (Do they have coaches tape? How do they know the coverage calls on any of those snaps they’re evaluating? Where is the raw data, and who collected it? Did they play ball? Is there any normalization for the level of competition? -FO.com does, nothing of it on PFF.com) I’m very familiar with statistical analysis and I’m aware of possible errors and biases in more subjective analyses. When it comes to football, there’s much more to the game than stats. So I go back to my original statement, and I’m sticking with that. My entry is based upon more than just “emotion.” Emotion definitely plays some part in many football decisions, as do finances, and as do statistical measures like the ones you’ve noted. My main issue was that the Texans could have later removed their franchise designation after investigating trade opportunities and at least exploring what D-Rob’s market value actually is. Either way, I put my opinion out there but I also tried to give a look at the whole picture of this scenario. I leave it to Fans to post their own takes, as you have. The Texans made their decision and will live with it, regardless of what we think anyway. I just hope it turns out for the better. -BigRon (edited)

I want to start off by saying that is a good piece, but I do have to disagree with some of it.

I think a lot of times fans tend to base their decisions on emotions. As a Financial Advisor I know that is one of the worst things an individual can do it make a decision based on their emotions.

That being said, how many players have we “thought” were better than they really were, strictly because they were “nice guys” “good off the field” “said the right things” (See Houston Astros)

and on the flip side, how many players have we thought were “bad” players because of the things they said in the media, or poor actions on the field?

I was never “in love” with Dunta. Yes he was a great tackler, played with emotion, but not even close to my favorite player, so I feel like I am speakin from an unbiased opinion.

As a season ticket holder from day 1, and studying Dunta throughout his career, I honestly was not crazy about the 23 mil. guaranteed and long term deal. I knew he was our best option at the time and I wanted a deal on our terms, and in the end wanted him to sign it.

Thinking back of the times he threw David Carr, and former Defensive Coordinator Smith under the bus, along with the “Pay me Rick” fiasco, how could Bob McNair want this guy. Not to mention the 12 mil guaranteed…..

Correct me if i’m wrong, but Dunta played probably a B- to B type season. For someone thats your “franchise player” thats not good enough….. Not to mention the Dollars and the attitude that come along with it.

I have a lot of faith in Rick Smith and Kubes in selecting some Corners in this draft along with some D-line help. If we can land Earl Thomas in the 1st, that will help out our corners tremendously.

This is the year for Mouldin to stay healthy and make a difference. I really liked what I saw out of GQ, and Reeves is very underated. Remember last year he didnt start due to breaking his hand in Camp.

I don’t see this move as “Bob McNair is cheap and wants to save 12 mil.” I see it as, we can spend our 12 mil in much better places that need more improvement and to lock up our guys who truly want to be here”

Also, I head Lance Zirline this morning say on 1560am that he spoke with an inside source with the Texans and he said “they could care less” if he was here next year…. That says alot.

I trust the young corners we have, improved pass rush, and Rick Smith and Kubes in free Agency and the Draft.

In the end, I think the Texans made the right decision. When a guy turns down 23 mil guaranteed in the worst recession since the great depression, and gets 0, Nade, ZERO Interceptions (in his contract year) HE’S NOT WORTH IT!

Sorry for the long post….

No problems with your disagreements or with the length of your comment. Very valid points you make, B-Stan. Appreciate it. -BigRon

Dunte is just one more FORMER Texan who is going to the playoffs before any of the current Texans will. Maybe Andre, DeMeco,and Daniels will get that chance someday. And maybe RSmith will finally be publicly recognized as and designated a fool, but knowing the Chronicle like i do, it’ll never happen.

All that remains to be seen. Your feelings, as always, are duly noted, joasis. Thanks for taking the time commenting. -BigRon

Personally, I think many fans gave Dunta a bad rap for his off-field actions last season.

I’m not someone that hated on DR. I wanted him signed. I don’t like the move and I don’t see how you replace him and I especially don’t like the idea of watching Manning feast on our secondary next year. Twice.

However, nobody gave DR a bad rap but DR. He’s the one that turned down $23 mil guaranteed, he’s the one that acted the fool with a $10 mil paycheck, he’s the one that held out and showed up not ready to play, he’s the one that disrespected the fans that loved him.

Don’t put Robinson’s reputation on “the fans”. He made it himself and we’re all responsible for our own behavior – including DR.

You make very good points. I moreso meant that some fans let their sentiments about his off-field actions color their observations about his play. I probably could have put that better. I will say that there’s always more to the story than what is reported publicly. My statement was made with that reality in mind. Both sides had their ‘spin’ on the negotiations, so who really knows the ‘actual factual’. I will state for the record, as indicated in the piece, that I do NOT condone Dunta Robinson’s ‘off-color’ actions and was highly critical of him in each instance of them in the past year. Thanks. -BigRon

I feel like we can put Reeves on one side, GQ on the other. If (and it’s a huge if) we can improve that pass rush just a little bit, we’ll be fine. Dunta was overrated because of the physical play and being such a small guy. Good luck to him….if he lands in Washington or Dallas everyone start Dre’ on they’re fantasy teams because it’s gonna get ugly!! Texans in 2010!! Let’s go boys!

The pass-rush will be even more key now than it already was. Good stuff, Tony. -BigRon

I don’t think that Dunta will be an above average CB; I think that we saw him peak before his injury. I think that he will be lucky to be an average starting CB for the next 3-4 years.

Now, regarding the draft: I don’t think “replacing” Dunta equates to automatically using a first round pick on a replacement. Here is what we really need to do; start trading down and create more total draft picks to improve our chances of getting a higher number of solid prospects (as the superstar level players will be off the board likely anyhow). The only exception would be if CJ Spiller is still on the board. Picking both 3rd round and 4th round prospects at CB may be a better option now, because my understanding is right now there is only one legitimate 1st round CB; then the talent apparently drops to well into the 2nd round. This may just be a year for quantity as our needs are spreading out and the sure-thing prospects for these needs are just not likely to be there.

I have no ill feelings toward Dunta but going out and writing pay me rick on his shoes might have been the last straw. I think the team knew that he wouldn’t be 100% at that he would get burned as most corners do but in the end the other corners on the roster played better than he did. He was good in run support but I saw too many first downs that were thrown his way and in the end you need leaders with A+ plus talent and I don’t think Dunta has that anymore. Good luck wherever he goes.

Agree 100% with this, UTGuy. The whole “Pay me, Rick” fiasco was very regrettable and silly on Dunta’s part. As soon as that news broke in the post-game coverage, I knew he’d made a major misstep… as bad as the holdout, or worse. I do think it likely was a BIG factor in the ultimate outcome. -BigRon

So once again “Jeremy Rice” is not the author of this blog. Geez, this is getting really lame. Wasn’t there a contest to vote on the best blogger and he won?? 99% of the time this blog is written by either Crimedog, BigRon or someone else. It’s time to put this thing to rest because it’s only updated about once every week and a half and this “Jeremy Rice” is nowhere to be seen anyway.

If you entered the contest and made a commitment to do this thing, then DO IT.

If you are having personal issues and are no longer available to do this then just say so and let crimedog or bigron on someone else take over! They pretty much have anyway!!

BTW bigron, don’t agree with your assesment of Dunta. I think they will be fine without him and have all the faith in the world that Smith has something up his sleeve this offseason.

You may be right. Everyone is entitled to his/her opinion. To be clear, this wasn’t some kind of indictment of the Texans’ plan in this case. It’s an overall assessment as best I could put together upon hearing the news and while doing several other things this morning. Of course I included my opinion, but I also tried to frame the topic where we can all feel free to discuss each of ours. It’s not about agreement or disagreement to me, though I have no problem with that part of it (I can hold my own). I just wanted to put together an entry for folks to post their takes on the news, and I expect commentary from both sides of the aisle.

As for your comments about this blog overall and JLR’s role here, I must state that I personally take exception with your statements. We have a good number of loyal readers and participants on this site who appreciate the work that Jeremy and all the other contributors have put in here… *for free*. We’ve done this, for over a year now, out of our love for the team and enjoyment with this Fan community. As a matter of fact, in Jeremy’s contest entry he made note of the fact that he would be bringing in different contributors to do guest posts and keep the conversation going. Although we haven’t had frequent new topics and the last entry was a bit stale, I’ve personally responded to almost EVERY comment in the last week to keep the discussion moving and did multiple times daily. Besides, it’s the offseason. I could see if there was regular breaking Texans news, but there isn’t, and we’ve still stayed on top of most of the goings on. We welcome suggestions for topics, and though Jeremy is the host, he tries to have guests here who provide different perspectives, and above all good content. I don’t intend to be hostile at all, but it’s real easy to post complaints about this site or any of the contributors here without a clue what’s going on behind the scenes and without considering that there are other human beings on the other end of your comments. Frankly, THAT, in my opinion, is “lame”. -BigRon

Dunta was a cancer to the team last off-season, and into the regular season. His negative rhetoric and actions are well established, and as a “team leader” he threw his mates under the bus concerning his contract.

Early on he even went out of his way to foster problems between other players and management. As one of those players said OTR, “He said he was lied to by Smith, and that upset me. But weeks later when he finally said exactly what happened, he wasn’t lied to. He and his manager were just unrealistic. I couldn’t believe it.”

Robinson’s anti-team actions and attitude led directly to at least four losses, and caused other games to be more closely contested contributing to even more losses. He wasn’t among the top 20 CBs in the league. The fact he’s the top FA CB just shows how poor the FA players are at his position this year.

The Texans are a better team without him due to the damage he has caused in the locker-room and to team chemistry. Only Jabar Gaffney has done more damage to a Texans’ locker-room.

Appreciate that commentary, Laz. I wasn’t in the lockerroom, so I don’t know all the details. I basically observe players’ comments and I try to discern honest feelings from the canned responses. There’s also the ‘word on the street’, which I’ve heard on occasion also. At any rate, your points are compelling. Thanks. -BigRon

I was never a big DROB fan and I certainly don’t have a problem with the Texans deciding not to give him a long term contract.

That said I thought that they should have put the franchise tag on him for this year. The secondary was weak with him and likely will be worse without him and that is not good going into a season when the Texans absolutely have to make the playoffs.

Even if the plan is to draft a corner with their #1 or #2 pick, rookie corners seldom play at a high level and unless management/coaching staff believes that McCain or Molden are miraculously going to morph into good players I don’t see the logic in letting Dunta walk in 2010.

$12 million is a lot of money but they have it and in hind sight it is going to seem like a small sum to spend if the secondary gets lit up like a Christmas tree this season and the Texans miss the playoffs.

I am normally a glass half full person and I think that the Texans have generally made some good progress over the last four seasons, but I think that this time they have made a bone head decision. They should have franchised Dunta again, drafted another corner and waited to see how their younger players developed before cutting the ties.

Good post. I think you said what I was trying to and did it much more succinctly. -BigRon

He may have been a leader in the locker room, I don’t know but I do know that on the field his play was a detrimate to the team. If anyone would have been interested in trading for DR then yes we should have stuck the transition tag or franchised him but maybe the Texans know something you have apparently missed. DR has lost a step and just isn’t very good anymore, and maybe just maybe no other team felt he was worth that kind of money and a draft pick. If that is the case then we would have been stuck with an overpaid underachieving penalty machine.

Good points. I don’t deny that D-Rob had his problems last season. I do think he was trending upward toward the end. Plus the Texans could have removed any tag on Dunta and not be stuck with him at all. There are time constraints to that of course, but it’s certainly plausible. I certainly don’t claim to know everthing the Pros do. I just think there are legitimate arguments that can be made for both sides. Either way, I’m a Texans Fan first before I’m a fan of any single player. That’s my bottom line. -BigRon

joasis, I’d be interested to see your list of former Texans who made the playoffs. The only ones who jump to my mind Ahman Green with the Packers and Travis Johnson with the Chargers. If you can find 5 people who say the Texans should have kept Green, let me know where you found them so I can stay away.

Robinson deserves some respect, because he was playing hard and playing well when the Texans were terrible. However, last off-season made me think he didn’t want to be a Texan anymore, and my loyalty to the player ends when he leaves my team. One of the things that made Dunta an asset to the team was his leadership ability, and once he started feuding with management, that asset turned into a liability. Even if he plays well with his next team, I don’t believe he would have played as well here. Even the most professional players will play better when they feel good about who they are playing for. Dunta didn’t have that last year, and it showed.

As for a replacement, I don’t buy the “worst CB on the team” thing. I suspect in most cases, the best coverage guys for most teams will have the worst numbers, since they wind up covering the best receivers. That said, nobody is going to confuse Robinson with Woodson, Asomugha, Revis, or Bailey, who seem to do pretty well in spite of covering the opponent’s best. But those guys are elite. Robinson isn’t elite, but he isn’t a total stiff either. He might not be top 5, but he is still top 64, and that means he can help somebody upgrade their starters. If you want a true replacement or even an upgrade, look at the top nickel guys in the league. These are the people who want a starting job but can’t get one, or the ones who are pushing out the experienced guys. If the replacement isn’t good, you have to wonder why they let the guy go. By letting Robinson go, the Texans are either making a business decision, which I can understand, or saying they have 3 corners (2 starters and a nickel) that are better than him, which I don’t understand, but I hope they are right.

Excellent stuff as usual, DC. Very fair statements and good insight. Props! -BigRon

So you take a chance and pay a guy (that it is known he is not to be a team player) three-times what he’s worth, on the slim chance you can get some team to give you a seventh-round pick for his extremely OVER-PAID, one-year contract?!?!

How do you come out ahead franchising a player that has the mind set to tell any team you might try to trade him to, “”I’ll not sign with you after this season if I’m paid less than the Top 10 average!”"? What dummy GM gives up a decent pick for an over-paid, one-year player?? Heck, Al Davis wouldn’t do that.

PLEASE!

I only speak for my own thoughts on the topic, and I certainly see the merit in your thoughts as well. Read some of my other responses, Lazarus. It’s not an unreasonable proposition based on the current NFL landscape. I’m not the only observer of the local franchise who has considered the possibility either, see here and here. The Texans could’ve had an ‘out’ from the tag amount if they had played things differently. Alas, it’s done now, and we’ll see what comes next. -BR

BigRon- You speak the truth & lots of it. The problem I have is with the #23. Not on his jersey, but guaranteed in dollars. $23,000,000.00 not offered, but guaranteed & he turned it down. For me this takes some of the pain out of the door hitting his backside.

You are certainly right about that, Kreno. He did have his chance to cash in and stay here. I actually think the Texans somewhat dodged a bullet with D-Rob’s turning that reported deal down. With today’s events it ultimately amounts to at least a cool $13MM they didn’t have to invest. Hopefully they’ll make good use of it. Thanks! -BigRon

Ok, most people are basing their decision on the probability that Dunta can produce big plays. He’s considered a play maker. Unfortunately those big plays were all ghosts last year. They never appeared. So why would anyone pay him play maker money, when he isn’t? Not ONE INT. None. Nada. Zip.

Even worse, the guy made the awesome decision to skip a lot of the offseason with a new defense coordinator at the helm. You’d think he’d want to be there. You’d think he would want to be implementing these awesome leadership skills he has. Instead he used them to manipulate Ryans and Daniels into holding out. Sure, they are grown men, but Dunta was beginning to be a cancer. That “Pay Me Rick” showed lack of class and leadership.

So last year we got sub par performance and poor leadership. Great. Sounds like a top 5 CB to me.

In reality we got squat out of this guy for 2 years. Time to go.

Your points are certainly well taken, Capt. BUT how about the fumble Dunta forced on Mike Sims-Walker in the JAX game at Reliant? I was in-house for that one. Without that play the Texans wouldn’t have even been in position for Chris ‘f’ Brown to fumble away their chance to tie that game (UGH!). A definite game changing play that goes unmentioned. Go back and watch the NE game and look at him matched up against Randy Moss, or check out the key tackles-for-loss he had to help stall out the Pats O for the Texans mount that comeback. Dunta wasn’t ‘very good’ by any stretch, but he wasn’t the scrub that some folks claim him to be. Certainly not worth a top-5 salary figure, but there were ways to mitigate that. Neither side did enough in my opinion to get there. Thanks, C.O. -BigRon

I guess I didn’t get to the ultimate point of my first post. I said that voting for Jeremy to be the host was the intent , but he is a no show most of the time is dissapointing. I understand health issues, family deaths, personal problems, but what I should have been more clear about when I said I disagree with you is about Dunta.

Like Jeremy, Dunta has been a no show, a disappointment and not lived up to expectations.There will always be someone else who can step up and fill his shoes (like this blog) and do just as well or better. Losing Dunta is not a big a deal as it looks like. Someone will come in and take his place.

Sorry if I was inarticuatle before,I realize you guys are not getting paid for this and that’s why I like your opinion. It feels like I’m talking to one of the guys at the pub. I like that. Have a drink on me and feel free to agree to disagree.

Uhhmm… okay. With all due respect, I’ll refer to what I wrote in response to your first post, Darrell. Personally, I can’t get with your comparison here. Dunta is a millionaire. Jeremy, while having been elected by popular vote, is a volunteer FanBlogger. Big difference. I’ll leave it to JLR if he wants to respond further. -BigRon

This Dunta thing stinks to something retchid. In my opinion, Dunta should have remained a Texan, and I for one am not happy for him just packing up and leaving. For one, I don’t wish any door hitting this guy on the rear at all.

Dunta was one of my favorites. Why? Because, he made the wins and the losses personal. The vantage point I have from my seats in Reliant allows me to see the faces of all the players close up, before and after games. Dunta is one of the guys most fired up and most amped up before a game, and after a loss is the guy who is the most dejected. To me as a fan, that means something. He takes losing personal and as much as I enjoy the game as a fan, I can relate with Dunta because I could see it in his face that he wasn’t just there collecting a paycheck. You never see him stick around after a loss high fiving fans or signing autographs. Rubbed some people the wrong way, but to me it made me admire him even more. Taking losses personally is a healthy thing, folks. Football is just as much emotion and determination as it is skills and X’s and O’s. Many players and coaches respected Dunta because of how much it meant to him to play ball.

So a lot of fans have let their opinions be known about being satisfied with Dunta (and his “act”) leaving town. I am not one of those fans. Dunta was a football player and a good one. Was he worth Top 5 this or 23 guaranteed that, to me, is irrelevant. The Houston Texans where a better team with Dunta Robinson in that locker room and on the field. That’s just how I see it, and I’ve watched mostly every home game from the stands and away games on TV.

I will say on record, that I think Dunta was extremely selfish for not taking the deal last year after he came back from injury. I mean, you just come back from a ridiculous leg injury and you expect some unrealistic payday? No, dude. Doesn’t work that way. I respect the player and the man, but his agent gave him some real bad advice.

This year, I would have franchised him and then work out a long term contract. You need good, emotional players like Dunta Robinson in every locker room. No, he wasn’t a top cover corner, but he was still a good player and he should have remained a Texan. I am sorry to see him go, and I wish him the best in the future. Hopefully, he doesn’t sign within the division (or the Cowboys), because I’d hate to seethe all things evil at a player that I respected when he was a Houston Texan.

I see much of the situation similar to how you do, Ruben. I would have liked to see Dunta back, but both sides would have needed a greater desire to compromise in order for that to have happened. That never seemed to be the case, which is somewhat unfortunate. I also hope Dunta has success wherever he lands, except of course when he’s on the opposite sideline from our boys. Thanks! – BigRon

Congrats on one of your better blogs. I agree with most everything you had to say. It really sucks to see Dunte go. He’s been one of my favs since he was drafted. The thing is, unfortunately, he was severely injured. The way he came back was amazing! I have a certain high level of respect for him and what he accomplished not only for making a comeback, but also the way he came back and started against every starter for every team The Texans faced in ’09. He emotionally elevated the spirits of the team in ’08 when he made his comeback. I just think he showed off too much and pissed off management with his attitude and by not following Andre Johnson and D. Ryans’ leads by 1) accepting a lower salary to help the team like ‘Dre did when he signed a new contract, or 2) accept what he got and show up to training camp on time like DeMeco did and show how a leadr does it. I think where he went wrong was trying to “do what he thinks is right, ’cause it’s a business.”

I’m just really really nervous how Rick Smith is going to replace him, and also how he’s going to handle Demeco and Pollard and Owens’ contracts. If the buzz around the local watering hole has any truth to it, Rick Smith is pissing off the best players on the team over contracts and may cause big problems in the locker room because of it. Rick Smith has been awesome picking up talent for this team so far, so all of us fans have no choice but to sit back and cross our fingers that he works his magic again and they are finally in the playoffs. If not…I really don’t want to think how this football addicted city will react if he screws up with Demeco and Owen and Pollard, and then doesn’t find adequate replacements with picks and such.

Just my opinion, lol.

~Chris~

Good stuff, Chris and thanks for the compliment. Dunta definitely has his faults. I think both sides could have done some things differently. I also don’t want it to seem like I’m really down on this move or Rick Smith. I’ve said before that I’m more a Smith guy than not. I just wonder what the course is now, like some other Fans, and am very curious to see the next move. I’m sure Smithiak had made this decision a while back and already have planned accordingly. What that plan is remains to be seen, but I still trust those guys to continue improving the team. -BigRon

I’m putting this out there for everyone. Smithiak’s not stupid. They’ve been doing this gig for many years and they seem to know personnel extremely well. Compare their current staff with that of Casserly and Capers. I understand DRob’s a fan favorite and before the franchise ordeal i loved his tenacity and leadership on the field but after the injury and the franchise tag it seemed that he changed not only on the field but off it as well. To be honest with you I wouldn’t have blamed DRob for leaving after he got held up at gun point a few years back but he didn’t. He stuck it out and played his tail off. I believe if there’s a great deal to be made for a FA at a need position then it’s going to happen.

Smithiak’s not going to let that kind of cap room go unused when this team is so close to the playoffs. I just don’t know that it would be for a CB. I could see them going after a FS like Rolle. I believe that would be an awesome fit.

If we could get Rolle and Pollard in the backfield together then I think that could be just as good as DRob being on the field with Reeves and Quin. Let me know what you think and thanks again. God bless the TEXANS!!!!

Good points. Again, I’m certainly not bashing the brass for this move. I just question if it was the best strategy and wanted to put all sides of it out here for Fans to add to as they see fit. My opinions on it are just that… and I’m no Pro. Agree about Smithiak’s track record of finding talent being far superior to Capers/C.C. Thanx. -BigRon

I for one do not think Robinson’s departure is all that big of a deal, but I do have this strange gut feeling that Mr. McNair might start being a little stingy with the money. I have no problem with Mr. McNair not paying Dunta top 5 CB salary, but this team has several holes to fill and all of them can not be upgraded by the draft alone. The Texan’s need upgrades on OG, C, DT, DE, RB, and yes now they will need a CB. I can ramble on and on about this but I will keep it short and to the point. Sign Julius Peppers, kick Smith inside with Okoye, and who ever is in the backfield just got better. Grabbing Peppers in free agency then allows the Texans to pursue either Iupati or Pouncey with their first pick and then a top quality RB in the 2nd round. The fans don’t want the owner to waste money on washed up players that their current teams do not want anymore, but we will sniff out quickly if Mr. McNair is shedding salaries and not trying to get to the next level. Free Agency done wisely is a big part of getting to the big game. Anyway, I enjoy you filling in for JR. Keep up the good work.

You’re probably right about droping D-Rob not being a big deal. I don’t really think it’s a make or break thing either. I do think it’s fair to question any decision the team makes as long as we realize that they have shown some track record of good evals. On another note, I don’t see them going after Peppers. Too much money required for a player w/ suspect drive. At least that’s how I think the Texans might see it. They wouldn’t overpay for one year for D-Rob, who has given a ton to make them a better team in his career, but they’re gonna break open the vault on a multi-year deal for Peppers? It would be interesting/exciting, but I find it unlikely. Thanx, John MC. -BigRon

Well, Looks like it’s started again. Just like the Oilers,you hire a G.M. with a huge ego who lies to the players ,thinks he’s more important than the player’s to the game,you have problems.Anyone remember HERTZEG. McNair should think about selling now ,because of his poor personel choice ,so we don’t wait 4 more years,waiting for the team to leave town when we quit showing up.Next move, Ryans will be gone.Neither Smith nor Gary can see talent ,nor the lack of in older players(retreads)….

That era you bring up was a bit before my time. I wasn’t trying to deride management with this entry at all. I do think it’s fair to question the move, and present alternatives. I don’t think any of us can be sure either way, which is why I welcome both sides of this discussion. Thanks for the comment, Texastom -BigRon

I’m not a Texans fan but did have the pleasure of watching 14 of the games last year so feel unbiased in my comments. I used to be a fan of Robinson, felt he was close to breaking out as one of the leagues top cornerbacks, but then the injury happened and I don’t know if he could ever fully recover from that.

The contract offered to him last year was the kind of contract a team that believes in you offers, and he made a right fuss over it and it hurt the Texans preparation over the season.

As a player I don’t think he had a bad year. He wasn’t great in coverage but he wasn’t terrible – solid is more the word with the odd bad game and odd good game. He didn’t seem, imo, to get better as the season went on which suggests to me this is his level right now and for the foreseeable future. He’s an average at best number 1 cornerback and you don’t pay average at best number 1 cornerbacks that much money – he knows it and thats why he’s the only player I can remember in recent memory wanting to be franchise tagged. Regardless of it being an uncapped year.

I think you underplay the financial elements of the keeping Robinson. It may not hurt this year but it will hurt in the future – no cap isn’t an excuse to go crazy with the money and teams are likely to be more cautious in my opinion because of the uncertainty of a future cap. Additionally teams need to think about how they negotiate and the leverage they’ll be giving to future free agents and players agents.

There are a host of reasons to let Robinson walk. The main one to keep him, hope that he gets better, isn’t one that good teams are built on imo.

As a Falcons fan I’d be terribly disappointed if we spent big money on a player like Robinson. Some team will overpay based on his rep – the Texans should be glad it won’t be them.

Great post. Dunta’s injury in that OAK game was my saddest day as a Texans Fan. I almost teared up even. He was playing legit top-5 level at the time and is definitely not the same player he was before that day. I probably overstated the ‘tag Dunta’ side of things in giving my opinion on things. I don’t think D-Rob was indispensable by any means. The ProFootballFocus numbers do seem to indicate that he did improve as the season wore on. It’s also what Coach K and Smith said, and I would agree. Also, I did think it was feesible to keep him via the F-tag for one season without it killing the team financially. Don’t think it was a “crazy” idea. It would have only been one year, and maybe there was even a trade to be made to get something in return for him. Smithiak chose to go a different direction, and that’s fine w/ me as long as the D doesn’t regress. We shall see. Oh, and I hope the Texans win the coin toss tomorrow over your Falcons! I’m lookin for that #19 spot and don’t want ATL to get a guy we could use in HOU. Haha! Thanks, Khaled -BigRon

I don’t think the Texans had any viable options. I can understand the idea presented about tagging then trading but that would of never happened. DRob would of simply signed the tag deal and that is it. He gets 12 mill for next year going into a certain waters with the CBA.

That option is a fantacy option and D ROb calls the shots entirely.

The Texans were in a no win deal. Pay 12 mil for a CB that is no where worth 12 mill or let him go.

As I said in another thread. If D ROB really wants to stay here he can have that choice. Just go negotiate the best deal he can and then give the Texans a chance to match it. It’s as simple as that. But there is just no way the Texans can justify spending that type of money for CB who really is not playing up to that type of paycheck.

It’s easy for me to say, Pay him! But it is not directly my money. I just don’t think that we are going to have a 12 million dollar drop off at corner next year. I still have hope for Molden who has all kinds of talent but had an injury that took a year to completely recover from. I also don’t think D Rob is that much better then Reeves if he is better at all.

I think Reeves is a better cover corner actually and will move over and covery the number one. Quin will continue to to play the other CB and McCain will take the nickle. If Molden stays heathy and Bennet can recover mentally from some personal issues this year, we’ll be just fine.

Appreciate your input, GB. IMO, it’s clear that the Texans had options and I don’t think we can be so sure a trade would have “never” happened. Who knows if Dunta & his agent might have taken the opportunity to try to look for such a deal themselves before signing the tender? I don’t know and was just putting it out there. It was unlikely though, and I understand the Texans’ not being willing to make a $12MM commitment with that intention. I can definitely see the Texans’ thought process here leading to a better outcome. Both sides are worthy of discussion though, IMO.

As far as Bennett and Molden, I don’t share your optimism. It would be great if they both turned it on, but IMO the Texans wouldn’t be wise to count on that, especially not if Playoffs depend on it. As I mentioned at the end of the season, if they didn’t see enough of it on the field in ’09 they should NOT expect it in ’10. Raw talent is one thing, but how many CB snaps has Molden even had in his two seasons? 15-20 or so, tops? He was already behind the curve from jump, having an even bigger adjustment to the NFL than most college CBs since he came from E.KY. We see how much time it’s taken Jacoby to make a similar jump, and he’s been playing. Bennett was the worst CB on the team last year. He could have a battle just to make the squad. We’ll see how things go though. Thanx. -BR

Great work, again! I have mixed feelings on this issue. First, as you state, there was an invested value in Dunta both in vested time with the organization and to a lesser degree trade value. Secondly, I think this was totally a dollars and cents issue. Not that McNair wasn’t willing to pay the $12m, but, from the stand-point of playing time. If McNair paid the $12m then Dunta was going to be on the field pretty much independent of his level of play or at least with a very long leash.

I do think Dunta’s attitude changed last year and he became a “me first” player. That said, he may or may not have taken well to coaching or playing within the scheme. He was either looking to “jump” a route or put the “big hit” on someone, often missing on both. I think this was ultimately a coaching decision (collective review of 2009 play and attitude) vs. on field playing time for 2010 dictated by the “franchise” tag ($12m). Thus, possibly forcing someone to the bench that could, with a bit more experience, exceed the level of play put forth by Dunta.

Yes, experience counts a great deal. But, if it’s the “wrong” experience it doesn’t have much long term value.

Good stuff. If this move tells us anything, it’s that the Texans have confidence in Reeves, Quin, and McCain. I hope they’re right, b/c the savings on D-Rob will indeed be even more of a positive in that case. Thanks, Bull. -BigRon

So everyone’s emotions were high yesterday and many probably still are. It’s a big deal losing DR and every Texan fan including me has an emotional response.

I agree with Jarrod at 8:20 in part (I do not expect any dramatic FA signings as he does). I think they carefully thought about this, I don’t think they made a decision this big rashly, and I do not think this had anything *directly* to do with McNair being willing to pay ‘XYZ’ for player ‘ABC’ that will get us to the super bowl.

I think our current regime is trying to be successful in a very hard sport and there are a lot of factors they have to consider – including money. I think they’re trying to build for the long haul and doing it very carefully with some hits and some misses, but mostly moving in the right direction.

I do not for a minute believe that, if they thought they could spend $10 mil on one player and that would get us to the promised land, McNair would refuse to pay it. I think there is a much more complicated calculus going on here. I have to believe they think making this move makes the team stronger in the long term and moves us toward our goals even if it is hard for us to see as fans.

Yes, I’m trying to have a glass that’s half-full. I don’t feel like spending the next six months eating a bottle of Tums every day.

Nice post, and I would agree that Smithiak did not take this move lightly. As for Mr. McNair and ‘who he’ll pay to get to the SuperBowl’, I really wasn’t meaning to call him out and I’m sorry if that’s how it came across. I do wonder if the team’s spending will be reined in with the uncertainty w/ the CBA, the economy, and a possible 2011 lockout. I put it in question form to kind of look forward, not only re: Dunta, but also in thinking how they’ll spend their salary dollars on any impact guys overall. That also includes their own guys like DeMeco, OD, etc. Thanks for the input. -BigRon

If we were to draft Earl Thomas in the 1st round to play FS do you think that his coverage skills would be strong enough to move up and play as the nickel CB in passing situations or against teams that pass frequently? I know that this has been mentioned before but I am asking to the extent that would his ability to be able to cover WR’s be adequate for the team to avoid drafting a CB before the 3rd round or even signing one given that Wilson could come in at FS when Thomas moves to the nickel? Is Wilson strong enough in coverage to not make that a liability as well?

That may not be clear…. basically, is Thomas at nickel CB and Wilson at FS in passing situations adequate enough to allow the Texans to draft a top OG/C or DT or RB if they are rated higher in the 2nd round than a CB?

The question above is why I hate the decision not to tag Dunta’. If the team doesn’t do something substantial in free agency I am going to be pissed. The problem is that free agency really doesn’t have impact players at the positions where we need them. Hopefully, there will be some unexpected cuts but it is hard to imagine that McNair was not willing to overpay Dunta’ a little bit this coming year if it meant having less of a need at one position to allow flexibility in the draft.

I’m a little concerned that the organization doesn’t see the interior line as a big weakness like the rest of us do and will be satisfied if the only upgrade there is a 3rd or 4th round pick. At this point, I would rather see us wait on a RB until the 3rd or 4th than interior line. It looks like there is almost no chance the team would take Shipley if he is on the board in the 2nd and maybe even if he is on the board in the 3rd because they now have a ton of holes to address.

If Thomas or Iupati is not on the board at #20 then I think the team should just trade out of the first with a team that picks in the top 10 of the 2nd round and also add at least a 3rd and a pick next year. Given the depth of this class and this decision we should add as many picks as we can unless one of the two impact players are on the board in the 1st.

On Earl Thomas, I think he can play the nickel just fine and would give the Texans a lot of flexibility on the back end. He talked about how many college snaps he had at nickel in that podcast interview I linked to in last entry. Said that most of his pratice time was actually spent at nickel to keep his footwork sharp. Actually, some teams are evaluating him more at CB than FS. I also think E.Wilson is still a solid coverage option for the Texans as long as he stays healthy.

Overall, I think a lot remains to be seen as far as how the Texans evaluated what they have in-house and what needs they have. There are still RFA tenders to be offered and other vets that may be cut. As mentioned earlier, this wasn’t a rash decision. I’m sure they’ve already decided how they’ll approach their needs and have a plan to address them. I don’t think losing D-Rob alters that approach all that much really. They already knew they needed DB help regardless, and I don’t think they’re now saying, ‘well..now that we lost D-Rob, CB is such a need that we have to pass on better players at other spots.’ They’ve had it sized up for a while now, even though maybe differenly than how we Fans do. BPA will still be a driving force in the draft if you ask me. Thanks, Todd. -BigRon

i think the point everybody is missing is that dante didn’t want to be here, there is nothing the texans could have done to keep him other than pay him stupid money.

they HAVE to sign pollard, period. what would his agent have done to the texans if they over paid dante. daniels and demeco, were watching this play out.

dante got what he wanted, out, no doubt thinking he will get his stupid money from another team.

dante disrespected the team, not showing up for camp, disrespected management and ownership with his antics. if the defensive line improves, we won’t miss him.

I appreciate your opinion, even though I don’t see things that way. I take Dunta at his word that he wanted to stay. He also wants more money than the Texans feel that he’s worth. That’s life in the NFL. I don’t know about the whole disrespect angle. Dunta did some things he’d like to have back and has admitted as much. The Texans have the money available to sign DeMeco to an extension regardless of D-Rob or anyone else. As far as Daniels and/or Pollard, I do not expect long-term deals for either. They’re both restricted and have zero leverage, plus I would agree with the Texans only giving both guys the necessary tender offers. That buys them time to make sure OD gets all the way back from his injury and that Pollard can do what he did last season for a 2nd year. Let’s not forget that Pollard was picked up off the street a couple weeks into last season. Why wouldn’t he be happy with a solid RFA tender for ’10 and want to go out and prove his worth again? That’s reasonable. I don’t think it’s necessary to do a major deal with either of those two this offseason. DeMeco on the other hand, restricted or not, should be given a top-shelf, long-term deal, IMO, and I’ve written as much here before. Thanks, ‘justbob’. -BigRon

Big Ron before his injury I was a big DR fan and I was thrilled to see him come back but his anti_front office antics really started to push my buttons, but what turned me into a out right DR hater was his anti team antics on the field. Let me give you the one thing that did it for me. Last season there were several incidents where other members of the team did something fantastic and DR acted like it was a bad thing. For example Pollard intercepts ball everyone else congradulates him but DR just turned around and walked off the field. This happened in different forms so many times that I began to think that DR resented the other DBs showing him up especially Pollard. So now you write a column about how we are going to miss him or how we let him go without getting anything for him, maybe that is true but maybe it isn’t maybe we just helped our team’s attitude. I say HURRAY AND I HOPE HE GETS CUT BY HIS NEXT TEAM. GOOD RIDDANCE TO BAD TRASH.

Interesting observations. I can’t say I saw that on-field stuff myself. Dunta definitely lost a lot of support with the stance he took in the negotiations last year and with that shoe stunt. Me and my boys called him “PMR” the rest of the year after that. Thanks, Bill. -BigRon

Pros: Robinson doesnt have to worry bout the tag thing anymore. We have money to resign key players…(demeco, daniels, pollard). Also, dunta could benefit from a change of scenery.

Cons: we lose a cb, making priority the cb position. Iffy on quin and reeves and bennett..even with the wr’s we facing this year..(jackson…smith..austin..not to mention wayne, collie, garcon…etc.) No tag equals no compensation.

Now, i’m still undecided by this, but dunta probably should have taken the 23 mil. deal when he had the chance…he may get 3 yrs 30 mil by someone who will overpay him..but you have to love his work ethic…and he did decent against the best wr’s…int’s in a game seems irrelevant now…

On a side note…i’ve been hearing rumors of randy moss being traded to the cowboys…this worries me on both sides…on the cowboys side..he’s 33 and is known to be…iffy when he’s not happy. on the texans side…if moss is with the cowboys…who’s gonna cover him? everyone will be so damn focused on miles austin(who is awesome, by the way), moss will end up being open way too many times…maybe..if this happens…if not, then it’s not that big a deal, since witten finds a way to get open…witten may do to houston what dallas clark does…but that’s just me on this side note…

I wish dunta and the texans luck this year…

Good post. The Texans probably had enough room to sign those three regardless of what they did with D-Rob either way. That’s especially the case since they don’t have to pay more than the high-level tender amounts in an un-capped year. Not to say that’s necessarily the best route to take, but it was financially manageable. The Texans chose otherwise, and letting D-Rob walk does give them a lot more payroll flexibility. We’ll see how they use it. Agree with you in wishing Dunta the best as he moves on to the next chapter of his career. Personally, I’ll really miss seeing #23 out there. He was my 2nd fave player on this team behind #80 at one point. Thanks, Silver25 -BigRon

BigRon, a lot of the points you’re making could be turned around. Was Dunta’s play trending upwards at the end of the season, or was the play of the other pieces of the defense trending upwards, thus covering up Dunta’s weaknesses? Is everyone that wanted Dunta gone showing bias for his off the field antics, or are you showing bias for his good play before his injury?

I watched every game too, and I saw a Dunta that was a fraction of who he used to be… except that his attitude was a lot worse. He was atrocious the first four games or so while he was getting back in shape (possibly costing us a trip to the playoffs). The next four games he was below average while he was getting his game back. The last 8 games he was a very average starting CB.

What I noticed most was that he was no where near the tackler that he used to be and had more whiffs than I’d ever seen him make. As a result he was not half as good in run support, his previous strength, as he was pre-injury. He appeared hesitant.

I would rather GQ start in his place in all honesty. Why play an average corner when you have a young corner who can play 90-95% as good and has more upside for future years? And, since Reeves was by far the best cover corner on the team last year, that leaves Dunta no where to start. What has me worried is not the starters on CB, is CB depth. We have no one to fill in as a starter if one of them goes down. And if two CBs go down… I expect to see a vet signed for depth, and an early round draft pick to compete with the starters. That will fix that problem.

Well, I can’t please everyone nor do I try to, Coop. I just respond to all the commetary as best I can. As far as my points being turned around, that’s fine. I could say the same thing to others. I put my opinion out there for you guys to take how you will, and I have much respect for everyone else’s. I also did my best to qualify my statements and to acknowledge both sides of the discussion. That’s what this thread is really about as far as I’m concerned. It doesn’t matter to me whether folks agree or not. I’m really just interested in you guys’ takes on things, yours included. I don’t think there is *one right answer* in this scenario, and public opinion seems to reflect that (both from Fans and from football folks). That is why I tried to be inclusive while still putting my own takes out here. So, to borrow from Jay-Z, “What more can I say…”? Appreciate the feedback and your ideas. -BigRon

Not tagging DR was the right move, and giving he and his agent notice before the combine was the classy move. It makes me think that the front office doesn’t hold any grudges over DR’s disasterous turn at public relations last year. Did Smithiak close the door on FA negotiations? I’m under the impression that once the market establishes DR’s worth, the Texans may or may not make a bid to keep him here. Maybe the thrill is gone, but maybe D-Rob’s desire to be Texan will win out and he’ll stick around to build us up. This wacky CBA deal is going to make for a wild FA signing period, and nobody knows how all the teams are going to deal with it.

Nice post, Nate. I really think the die is cast. Many NFL media types are predicting that D-Rob will be in pretty good demand once things jump off on 3/5. Just heard Russell Baxter of ESPN on the radio suggest that Dunta will be one of the first 10 FA’s to find a new deal. Maybe there’s still some interest both ways between Texans/Dunta. However, based on comments from both sides in the media, I find D-Rob’s return to HOU highly unlikely. Thanks. -BigRon

Come on,everybody dogs likes to compare the Texans to the Saints because they were just about equal in inneptitude after the 05 season. The Saints went & found a couple of so called washed up secondary guys & look what happened. I aint saying we can pick up a couple of 30 plus CB’s & expect the same result but there will be some decent free agent talent out there that can play as good or better than Pay Me.

If he goes to another team & plays lousy then what will people say? Especially Joasis who blames all of this on Rick Smith. I think Smith has made some mistakes but nothing CATASTROPHIC. Every team makes mistakes,even Bill Polian,believe it or not. Dunta is not as good as he was or as good as he thinks he is. We will do better without him!

Bill (above) referred to the Pollard incident which I couldn’t help but be drawn to when it happened right in front of us (Section 115). I totally quit watching the Pollard return and watched Dunta slowly saunter to the back bench and sit down….very indifferent. Prior to this incident when he would try to jump a route and miss, I tried to justify his play with “aggressive style, just trying to make something happen and he hadn’t fully recovered from the injury”. After the incident, I changed my opinion and perception that it was all about him. Again, if this was his attitude and it probably was expressed in other ways, the coaching staff didn’t toss him under the bus publicly; but, they might have been ready to start considering life without Dunta.

Thanks for adding that in here, Bull. Yeah, the arguments for letting Dunta walk are very compelling for several different reasons. -BR

Juluis Peppers is the biggest still very productive free agent on the market. Yes, I agree with everybody that we do not need to go after Peppers if it is going to look like the Albert Haynesworth deal. I do get that thought, however, a closer look at Peppers career does not really spell that he has a drive problem as you suggest. I believe Peppers had one down year and that was when he lost a NT by the name of Kris Jenkins. Remember Jenkins who owned our Center last season in the Jets game? Anyway, I guess all of the nay-sayers on Peppers is satisfied with the same old non pass rush from our current 4. A. Smith has never been the ideal DE that we were sold on and is a better fit on the inside. The only experiment we have with the front 4 would be Conner Barwin and for some reason, I don’t believe Kubiak sees Barwin has an every down DE. That being said, the 2009 front defensive line will not be any better establishing the rush in 2010. I would rather the Texans get just one top notch free agent than 3 or 4 depth guys. Juluis Peppers has been a top tier DE his entire career.

I’m out.

[BigRon,

I for one do not think Robinson's departure is all that big of a deal, but I do have this strange gut feeling that Mr. McNair might start being a little stingy with the money. I have no problem with Mr. McNair not paying Dunta top 5 CB salary, but this team has several holes to fill and all of them can not be upgraded by the draft alone. The Texan's need upgrades on OG, C, DT, DE, RB, and yes now they will need a CB. I can ramble on and on about this but I will keep it short and to the point. Sign Julius Peppers, kick Smith inside with Okoye, and who ever is in the backfield just got better. Grabbing Peppers in free agency then allows the Texans to pursue either Iupati or Pouncey with their first pick and then a top quality RB in the 2nd round. The fans don't want the owner to waste money on washed up players that their current teams do not want anymore, but we will sniff out quickly if Mr. McNair is shedding salaries and not trying to get to the next level. Free Agency done wisely is a big part of getting to the big game. Anyway, I enjoy you filling in for JR. Keep up the good work.]

{You’re probably right about droping D-Rob not being a big deal. I don’t really think it’s a make or break thing either. I do think it’s fair to question any decision the team makes as long as we realize that they have shown some track record of good evals. On another note, I don’t see them going after Peppers. Too much money required for a player w/ suspect drive. At least that’s how I think the Texans might see it. They wouldn’t overpay for one year for D-Rob, who has given a ton to make them a better team in his career, but they’re gonna break open the vault on a multi-year deal for Peppers? It would be interesting/exciting, but I find it unlikely. Thanx, John MC. -BigRon}

Posted by: JOHN MC at February 24, 2010 08:36 PM

Yeah, I definitely get your point and agree to an extent. I did state that I’d be interested in and excited by the idea of the Texans’ getting Peppers. As for his suspect drive, it’s not just me suggesting that. I don’t even necessarily buy it with a change of scenery. My point was that perception is out there among NFL people about Peppers. I think he could be a huge impact guy in HOU, but will the Texans believe that enough to pay the price to get him? I’ll believe it when I see it, my friend. Thanks. -BR

Don’t forget that if Dunta is signed away with a big contract we will be given a 3rd round compensatory pick in the 2011 draft. So, it isn’t as if we’re giving him away for nothing.

Uhhmm… I mentioned exactly that in the 2nd paragraph of the entry and provided a link with info about the compensatory pick process. It won’t necessarily be a 3rd, as there are variables involved that are TBD. Plus that doesn’t help them in 2010, and maybe not in 2011 if there’s a lockout. Thanks. -BR

Great write-up Big Ron! Thank you for keeping the blog going while JLR is taking care of important issues! Is there chance this move comes down to the bottom line? It is general knowledge that the Texans organization is highly profitable. Maybe they want to win, but as long as the fan are happy with the product(always keeping the hope of next season) why make major changes or investments? We know they are able to keep good p.r. through 610 & the chron. Or it might be the obvious, they have a different way to allocate their salary cap.

tb

Thanks, tb. You know, I’m not really sure. I still believe Mr. McNair will do whatever’s necessary, within reason, to bring a Championship to Houston. That said, I want to see what they do this off-season with all the financial uncertainty the League is dealing with. There are moves out there to be made that would significantly improve the team and are definitely reasonable. It also seems like the Texans are in a position of strength compared to many other teams. How they approach this off-season will tell us a lot about where the organization stands overall, IMHO. On another note, I haven’t forgotten about your question from last entry about what my plan would be. Glad I waited, because I would have gotten the Dunta thing wrong already! Haha. I have my ideas, but I think we’ll have to see if there are anymore interesting cuts in the coming few weeks first. Appreciate your continued support. -BR

BR – Sorry, my comment wasn’t aimed particularly at you. It was a general, scatter-barrel shot as no GM will give away a pick for a player who has announced he won’t sign a contract commensurate with his talent level.

There will be a draft in 2011, including compensatory picks. Actually, we may get two threes or a three and four depending on how Pitts and Walter do.

No problem. I’m getting that way myself with all the typing. Yeah, I know there’ll be an ’11 Draft, comp. picks. etc. But my point was that if there are no games that Fall, the picks still don’t pay dividends ’til ’12. I was focused on 2010 and the Texans makin’ the run we all hope for. Also, I’m personally hoping both Chester and Kev W. are back in Houston. Oh… and, by the way, I wouldn’t put anything past Al Davis or Dan Snyder. Haha. Thanks for coming back in, Laz. -BR

Darn, I forgot to warn Darrell that those loyal participants I mentioned… yeah, they’ll let our critics HAVE IT if they get too far out of line. Sorry I had to do a little censoring of your comment, otherjerry. I think we get the point just the same though… Hahaha. Umm…Thanks? Haa! -BigRon

I start by saying that I usually agree with most of what you say here on the blog. I also hate that we got nothing for him. But considering that they offered him a (well-reported) contract for over $23 million coming off a major injury where he clearly was not the same player (and BTW he still isn’t)… Was there another choice that I am missing? Since we could not get him to ACTUALLY SIGN, doesn’t that kind of negate a sign and trade?

I also watched the games. All of them. He clearly was a liability in the first four games (his own little personal pre-season of his own making at the expense of the team’s welfare.) He was subpar for the next few, for sure. He did not grade out in the numbers because he did not grade well in the eyeball test either. When he had a chance to make the play (the VY toss right into his hands) that would have put us into the playoffs and would have sealed one of our most important wins in franchise history what did he do? He missed it.

C’mon, let’s be honest! Was he worth anywhere close to $10 million? And then he’s decided that he’s suddenly willing to play for the $12 million franchise tag because he’s so attached to us here in Houston? Could any of his willingness come from the fact that he was paid like a TOP 5 corner and played like one not even in the TOP 90? And he’ll sacrifice by taking a 20% raise? C’mon man!!

We missed the playoffs by 1/2 a game. Reward him for his selfishness that obviously cost the team, and possibly was the reason that missed on our long-stated goal of the playoffs? As Ozzie says, “Pssst… Please!!”

Everyone gets over-inflated contracts in the NFL. The difference in the good teams and the bad ones is that they limit the bad ones. Almost all of these FA contracts make sense on some level when they are first done. Then they work out about 50% of the time. But right now, even the D-Rob supporters of keeping him saying that he would be seriously over-paid. That is why Rick Smith is the GM and you and I are not. Because he makes good decision not emotional ones.

Do you think that it could possibly be that you are not okay with him leaving because it is not YOUR money that you’d be overpaying by about 60%? He’s asking for this from the man he totally disrespected on National TV for BEING RIGHT!! Ohhhh, okay.

I honestly do not think you’re right on this at all. But I really am glad for the chance to comment (even if it is a disagreement) and for you having the spine to stand up and offer your opinion. I have a feeling you knew that you were going to be in the minority, and that takes stones.

Hey man, I don’t have any issue with disagreement. I wanted to kickstart the discussion with a strong take, and it goes with the territory. I never claim to know it all or always be right. I stated that I could be off base in the entry. However, if have an opinion on something, which I typically do, I’m not one to be ‘mealy-mouthed’ in expressing it. (typed, but you get my meaning). That being the case, of course I’m prepared to argue my stance and I always appreciate a lively, reasonable debate. That’s what we’ve got going here, and I think it’s been good to flesh out the issues both ways. As far as being in the minority is concerned, I don’t bar that at all. Heck, it’s a way of life for me. I almost don’t feel right otherwise… haha.

To the topic, I know I’m not the only one who watches the games. Our readers, like yourself, stay on top of the details. My comment was more in reference to the stats I knew would get thrown at me, not to slight anyone else’s game observations. I do prefer the eyeball test over the stats, and your points in both regards are well taken. I never stated that I’m “not okay” with Dunta’s leaving. I will say that I am not sold that the guys behind him are better players now or will be in 2010. I’m also very curious as to what the plan is now that DRob’s gone – across the board, not just at CB. I don’t look at the money issue just plainly from a player value standpoint. If I did, I’d be yelling “BS” at the top of my lungs at the fact that #59 & #81 still don’t have new contracts yet. What about Kevin Walter? Is he getting some of that cash now? With the un-capped year and the Texans being so close to the Playoffs, the free-agent situation shouldn’t be viewed this year the same as it is in every other year. Yes, I would rather they had franchised DRob, if only temporarily, and tried to get back something in trade. If that couldn’t be done then pull the tag and let him walk. The Texans didn’t want that hassle. Okay, so maybe you guys are right. As I stated, I ride with the team either way, even though I’ll miss having Dunta on it.

As far as his selfishness, I get that side of it too. BUT people say things when they get heated all the time that they’d like back. Dunta admitted as much. Let’s not act like this guy didn’t lay it on the line and play well for the vast majority of his time in Houston. #23 was the guy you knew would never ‘mail it in’ and who played like he was possessed. Lightest guy on the field most weeks, but threw that weight around the most. That injury changed everything, and I hate that it did. I knew it that day, too. If DRob had never been hurt, then it likely never would have come to this point. I realize that doesn’t have much to do with the decision the Texans had to make, other than to help get Dunta pushed out the door. But when people call Dunta a “cancer”… that kinda discredits everything he did pre-injury, when he was one of the few reliable defenders the Texans had. Let’s remember the agony and frustration this guy had to fight through for better than a year just to resume playing. Shouldn’t we also figure that in when evaluating the guy’s motives in trying to get paid well? Anyway, certainly there is emotion from Fans like us, both positive and negative. I still support Smithiak regardless. BUT they need to make the Playoffs. Period. Appreciate it, Randy. -BigRon

Well, you know how I feel about this BS. Shoulda franchised him. I guess I’m cool with it if McNair goes out and spends MEGA-bucks on FA’s this off-season. If they just didn’t feel like Dunta fit into their plans, and that’s why they didn’t tag him. Who here believes that? Who thinks Rick Smith convinced McNair that Robinson wasn’t a good value to soothe his own ego? Who thinks the Texans just cut off their nose to spite their face? Yeah, me too.

There is one argument, however, that goes beyond hypotheticals, and becomes downright insulting. When I hear someone say there was no way the Texans could pay Dunta without also throwing big money at Ryans, Daniels, and Pollard, I go crazy. With that line of thinking I guess it’s totally cool to not pay those other guys just so long as you don’t pay Dunta. Really!?! What, DeMeco Ryans is placated by the Texans not paying Dunta? Get outta here. Dunta being tagged has no affect on the RFA’s getting raises. Yes, he would be getting paid stupid money, money he is not worth, but he would not count against a cap. Most importantly, he would still be on our team.

The Texans could’ve just kept him for insurance against an injury, and to play until the CB they draft this season is ready to start. With the schedule we face next season we sure could’ve used three good CB’s.

Too bad Texans fans, the organization took the cheap way out. We’re just the suckers who keep spending money on a team that refused to do the same.

My back-up!!! Phew. What’s up, Dude… What took you so long??!! Hahaha. I’ve been trying to state the case, but it’s gettin’ pretty lonely on this side of the fence, man. I’m done at this point. Now I’m just reeeeaally interested to see what comes next. Thanks for the reinforcements, Carson. -BR

I posted earlier on this topic but I want to say that I could not disagree with Darrel any more than I do about his statements about this blog. The guys who post here do a great job, even if I disagree with them on one particular topic. And I remember distinctly that sharing the responsibilities was the expressed intention before he won the job.

His second response? I think we all know what that was. LOL

EXACTLY! Thanks a ton for your continued support of the FanBlog, Randy P! -BR

We have to agree to disagree here. If the Texans tag him he is going to sign the tender. Simple as that, WHY?:

1. because no one else is going to pay him 12 mill next year. He is way over paid and is not worth that.

2. the reason he signs is because of the uncertainty surrounding the potential lock out and CBA agreement. That is real storm of an issue. It makes since to sign the tender take the 12 mil guaranteed for the year. You watch, I doubt anyone pays him a guaranteed 12 mill this year. They are going to pay maybe half of that guaranteed for this year. They know if there is a lock out that they have to pay anyway and then they are going to have the right to waive him. Basically the 12 mil F tag is far and away the best deal D Rob can get and he knows it and so the Texans.

Plus D Rob is not a Matt Hassleback type of deal, you just cannot compare the situations. D Rob is what D Rob is a solid middle of the pack corner who has more value to the Texans then anyone else. No one is going to pay him 12 mill this year and not one was going to pay 12 mill and + a 3rd round pick. That is a fantacy scenario IMHO and that is what the Texans think as well and I happen to agree with them.

If we sign the tag D Rob has all the cards and he was unwilling to sign a very reasonable long term contract last year, why would he be willing to negotiate a reasonable one this year when he has a guarenteed 12 mill in hand with a team that he says he wants to play for?!??!??!!

With Bennett I would agree, not with Molden, Molden had one of those freak injuries that just took a long time to heal a broken ankle with a good amount of soft tissue damage, he came into the year on the PUP list and was battling to catch up. The talent is there, the smarts are there and he even though he has not played that does not mean he has not improved. He has been coached he does know our system he has practiced against AJ and the other receivers.

I know that players can improve in practice, it happens all the time. It’s not like he is rookie and has to learn it all. In fact that is how most NFL players get playing time, THEY DEVELOP OVER A YEAR OR TWO.

We right people off far too easily if they are not instant impact guys. The truth is guys like Cushing are the exceptioin not the rule, especially at positions that are deep in technique like OT, DT, Secondary and QB>

Molden always had the physical skills and Koobs even said that before his injury they were going to start giving him seroius reps at CB because he had the goods and was now catching up with the level of the league. He just get whacked by an injury.

Here is the deal, they may see that Molden is rehabbing well and if he can get completely well and come into camp a 100% he may be a really good one!

I’ll go from bottom up. Much of what you state about Molden is speculation on your part. No problem with that. I’m just not there with you. The fact of the matter is that he has done next to nothing at CB in NFL games. There’s a difference between writing a guy off and simply not counting on him to be a real factor until he shows you he is one. I’m not saying there’s no hope for Molden. I am saying that it would be unwise for the Texans to expect anything more from him than what he’s shown to this point. I understand the details of his injury, and I realize he came in last year and was on PUP. Well, PUP guys aren’t allowed to practice as I understand it. He also had a different DC and a brand new DB coach. You mention his possible improvement in practice. Ok, sure. But he’s missed a ton of practice reps also. Sorry, but Molden has to show me again before I have confidence that he can hang at CB. How long did we wait and hope for Charles Spencer to recover? He never did, and Spence was already a starter. No, it’s not the same circumstance or injury, but still. If the deal is, “..if he can get completely well and come into camp a 100% he may be a really good one…”, then I say the key words there are ‘If’ and ‘may’. Potential just means he hasn’t done enough yet. Granted, he definitely was one of the most physically gifted DBs in that class. No one’s calling him a bust, but the Texans shouldn’t be counting him as anything more than a bonus IF he can play. Maybe he still lives up to that potential. Remains to be seen.

As far as your comments on Dunta and his value. Cool, we’ll agree to disagree. I think you’re off on how much Dunta stands to make on the market. If anything, the CBA situation would make it *more* likely for a team to pay him a heavy guarantee up front for his services with this year being un-capped, not less. I’ll leave out breaking down the feesibility of a trade, because it’s pointless now anyway. It could’ve been done, and the info is out there. Let’s just see once the numbers come out, shall we? Thanks a lot for your contributions, GB. -BigRon

“What if keeping D-Rob is the difference between the D continuing to improve as it did through the 2nd half of the season or going through another early season adjustment phase that could cost the Texans another Playoff appearance?? I wonder if Mr. McNair would spend that $12MM if we knew that was case.”

McNair would not pay the $12MM because DR isn’t worth it. DR may get it, but you know and we all know he isn’t worth it anymore.

DR is like my stock portfolio. Due to the financial crisis, it went way way down. It’s not coming back to its previous level any time soon. Due to DR’s injury, even with his brave and hardworking return, he’s not coming back to his previous level anytime soon. Unfortunate but true.

Leadership is hard to replace in a locker room as we know, ala Aaron Glen. But this team is different from the one that Aaron Glen left.

Like your blog on DR, I just disagree with almost all of your points.

You might be right about that answer. I threw that rhetorical ? out here just to see everyone’s perspective on it. I don’t really think any one player not named Matt Schaub or Andre Johnson is that big a key to the Texans’ fortunes. I moreso just wanted to know how other fans see the Payroll vs. Playoff aspirations issue. Thanks for chiming in, Mike H. -BigRon

Well, Lance Zierlein commented yesterday that a source said the Texans will likely receive no less than a 4th round compensatory pick for 2011, so there’s that. I still think Smith could have a good plan to improve the ballclub. I’m in ‘wait and see’ mode as usual. Thanks, Jack! -BigRon

To add to GB’s post I would say that I agree that Molden should be thrown in the mix next year but also agree with Big Ron that we can’t plan a strategy with the expectation that Molden is going to become productive. We can sure hope though.

I hope they waive Bennett but unless the team can land a top CB in FA or a great value falls to them in the draft I would be okay with them signing a veteran CB that can still contribute for depth purposes. The reason I say this is because we think Quin and Reeves can be adequate as the starters (although not spectacular) and we know that McCain is adequate as a dime back with the potential to be a nickel guy. Molden is sort of a wild card that has a lot of talent but has yet to prove anything because of injuries but, nevertheless, hasn’t proven anything. With that lack of certainty it would be nice to add a veteran backup for stability in the event of injury or lack of progression from McCain and Molden.

With all of that mentioned above I am starting to think that Earl Thomas would be an even more valuable pick than I have previously ranted about. His ability to play the nickel would provide even more depth and his pass coverage skills from the FS position would provide more protection for the weakened secondary. He could really provide some flexibility in the secondary for this upcoming season while giving us a potential star over the long haul.

I think Thomas’ versatility is his greatest asset as far as considering him for the Texans. I’m trying not to get too locked in on individual guys though, ’cause you never know how the board will fall or how the Texans actually have their own roster and the prospects evaluated until after the fact. Like I mentioned in my response to GB, I like Molden’s talent for sure. I’m just thinking the Texans shouldn’t bank on his making a significant impact next year. To me, whatever Molden does at CB would be gravy. We’ll see if Quin and Reeves can be adequate. I’m not sold. They were barely adequate in coverage last season if you ask me, and that was with Dunta taking the best WR. Will either be better than DRob was on the other team’s main guy? Possibly. They’ll certainly be cheaper though, so that’s fine I suppose. I still think the Texans need to add two new CBs and a FS between the Draft and Free agency. I expect them to do that, but when in the Draft or at what salary in FA is the mystery. And even still, the pass-rush HAS TO be better for the secondary to be effective (with or w/o DRob). That’s the bottom line, IMHO. Appreciate the input as always, Todd. -BR

How much of this would be a non-issue if there were no CBA issues? Assuming there was a cap in place, no worries about a lock out, etc. Would we all still be worrying about Dunta leaving? If there was no worry about the immediate future, maybe OD and Demeco have contracts right now. If they did, would we care about Dunta?

Very interesting question. One of my main reasons for keeping Dunta was the fact that *they could* this year… and it’s precisely because of the CBA issues. If the usual cap constraints had been on track to still be in place, I’m of the belief that the Texans would have handled things much differently. They might have never even tagged DRob the first time and focused on getting ‘Meco and OD done last year. However, I think many clubs’ administrations were banking on an un-capped 2010 and have been prepping for it for more than a year. That’s just smart business, and these owners didn’t build their bankrolls by being dumb. Basically the whole picture would be different. So to answer your question: For myself, I’d still care, but there would be bigger issues to worry about ’cause the Texans would have a lot more ‘balls in the air’ at the same time than they do with things as they are now. Good stuff, Will. -BigRon

I’m glad they’re not overpaying for any one player. Take a page from the Patriot’s and Steeler’s books… To pay DR more than market shorts the payroll for the rest of the team’s budget. He’s a JAG, now. Smith made the right move. If you’re a fan of reactionary, illicit spending, perhaps you should check out the Washington Redskins. Dan Snyder loves paying the big bucks to free agents. He’s got 10 ringless fingers.

I personally think this was a good divorced for both sides. There is no way you can convince me that he is worth $12. He is a very good against the run and is a team leader, but he is average (at best) against the pass.

If we had kept him, we might have been lulled into thinking we didn’t need to spend one of our 1st-3rd round selections on the secondary. Now that is a given.

I tend to agree with you Big Ron for the most part. I think that Dunta, whatever his limitations were, he was still our best cornerback. these people that are talking up reeves, Quin, and Molden are so off base it is not even funny. Reeves was a cast off in Dallas. I have friends that are Cowboy fans and he was on the same level as Petey Faggins was for us. in other words, they were happy that he was gone. Quin, I like and when Rob rang came down for our training camp he said that he was going to be a stud. However, Fred Bennet also had a great rookie year and he will probably have to fight for a roster spot. Molden, you gotta do something on the field for me to be happy. The reason why guys like Quin and reeves looked as good as they did was because they did not have to gaurd the reggie waynes and the Randy Mosses of the league.The other reason I wanted us to keep dunta is that it creates another hole that we need to fill up in the first 2 rounds. So those of us that wanted us to draft Dan Williams, pouncey, Iupata, it will probably nothappen unless we sign leigh bodden. It is well documented how much of a fan I am of Dunta and if you do not believe me ask GB. However I did not expect Dunta to be franchised a second time so I am not has disappointed as you are Big Ron. The Texans probably were thinking a combination:

1.) the drop off between reeves/Quin and Dunta is not that much. I disagree with this.

2.)They believe that they should spend the money on a the pass rush. I agree with this because you have to build from the inside out. Look at the New york Giants super bowl team. they were starting 2nd and 3rd stringers and they beat the team that statiscally was the best offense ever. they had a great pass rush.

3.)Dunta’s skills had erroded to the point they were going to draft a corner early anyways. they were thinking that like the stock portfolio guy that he was never going to get back to the pre injury level. It would send the wrong message to pay somebody 12 million and not pay guys like demeco and Owen.I agree with parts of it. I do not think that Dunta skill had erroded to the point that he would go down hill from here. I believe he still has one or 2 good seasons left in him. but if they believe that then I have no problem with the second part. In essence I do not agree with the first part.

It is probably a combination of the three things that I just mentioned that led to the Texans not signing Dunta. He was one of my favorite texans and I also believe people were too hard on the guy. He was not a scrub as some people here imply. He was not a top 5 corner but he was also not a top 95 as some people mentioned. He was a top 15 to top 20. this will be proven by whoever gives him his next contract. If he gets more than 23 million guarenteed, it will be proven that he is not the scrub that people make him out to be.

4) This is added to my last post that I forgot. If we franchised him, Dunta could sign the franchise tag anytime and the texans must have thought they would not be able to trade him and they did not want to be on the hook for 12 million.

@GB

If we sign the tag D Rob has all the cards and he was unwilling to sign a very reasonable long term contract last year, why would he be willing to negotiate a reasonable one this year when he has a guarenteed 12 mill in hand with a team that he says he wants to play for?!??!??!!

To me I can not believe you are questioning this at all. Dunta has said on record that he would do things differently if he were at this position again. to me that says if The texans were to offer the “reasonable” contract that he would sign it. Your logic is very faulty because a guaranteed 23 million is more than a guaranteed 12 million. 23 million is also more than 12+9 million. I will let you do the math there GB. He is one year older which makes him getting a long term deal more urgent. So this whole idea that you have that why would he sign one this year if he did not sign one last year is not logical. football is a very rough sport and he would be doing backflips if the texans approached him with a longterm deal. He has said he wants to stay in Houston. Past performance is not always the best indicator of future performance

first let me start by sayin Dunta was on of my top 5 favorite Texans, so to see him walk is a bit frustrating. i will never have beef with a Texans fan but i feel its a lil weak how fans downplay Dunta’s place on this team but he’s gone and its done….

now with that being said i dont feel that was a smart move because for your Defense to go to the next level you must have Exp playing together as a unit. you cant just fill any young rookie DB and expect our defense to pick up right where we left off last year…

i dont care what flashy rookie you bring in he is shark meat next year. he is gonna be outta position and miss assignments that may cost us games[what will we say then hmmmmm]. before we had two corners that were willing to help in run support now we have to reach in the draft and hope the rookie plays up to snuff. with Dunta yea he would frustrate you now and then but dude would make up for it with a big hit to get the Defense pumped…..

i dont know if ya’ll saw the schedule for next year and who we gotta play, now is not the time to start shaking up what little secondary we had. seein how we were supposed to fix the front line through the draft[how has that turned out so far] . its gonna be an ugly season next year

wouldnt it suck if Dunta signed for less to play with an elite team like the Steelers, Pats, or Colts just to play us twice a year….. yikes

- I really appreciate all the feedback, both positive and negative. It’s been a great debate with the discussion here. Of course there’s a bunch of emotion involved, as we all know Dunta Robinson is the type of player to elicit that reaction one way or the other.

- Sorry for being slow to respond to the last few comments here. I’m kinda to the point where I’m petered-out on the D-Rob issue. Plus it’s the weekend, and not just any weekend – The NFL Scouting Combine is in full swing. So for me it’s on to the next one as far as the discussion goes. I’m shifting to Full Combine Mode for the next few days. We’ve got a couple things in the works, so stay tuned.

[Your points are certainly well taken, Capt. BUT how about the fumble Dunta forced on Mike Sims-Walker in the JAX game at Reliant? I was in-house for that one. Without that play the Texans wouldn't have even been in position for Chris 'f' Brown to fumble away their chance to tie that game (UGH!). A definite game changing play that goes unmentioned.]

When I was a DJ in college I believed every album had at least ONE good song it (sometimes I was wrong), but that doesn’t mean I would have paid for the whole album. Especially at the asking price. Break up what we paid him and how many big plays he made….not a great buy.

[Go back and watch the NE game and look at him matched up against Randy Moss, or check out the key tackles-for-loss he had to help stall out the Pats O for the Texans mount that comeback.]

This kills me when people mention Dunta covering Moss. First, Moss was NOT the go to guy on the Pats. Welker was. If you look at TDs, Moss was ahead. But Welker was certainly the preferred toss. I have also read that Moss is pretty easy to read now depending on how he comes off the line. You really can’t judge Duntas success by that game, cause you couldn’t really tell if the Pats were in it or not half the time.

[Dunta wasn't 'very good' by any stretch, but he wasn't the scrub that some folks claim him to be. Certainly not worth a top-5 salary figure, but there were ways to mitigate that. Neither side did enough in my opinion to get there. Thanks, C.O. -BigRon]

I’m not saying he is a scrub, but his performance before getting injured and after are evident. He is no longer that top performer, and his stats show it. Sure he was covering Moss, but I also saw him get burned by rookies. Wasn’t it Dunta who was covering the youngest player to get a TD?

I disagree that neither side did enough. If what I have read is true, the Texans gave a good offer. Especially to someone coming off an injury and unproven. Dunta decided to tough it out and made a spectacle of it. I am sure some other team will spend mad money on him, but I would bet that their fans will be complaining next year on how much they spent compared to what they got in performance.

Molden and Spencer are apples and oranges. Not even close. Spncer’s injury was career threatening from the get go and was much more severe in nature then Molden’s. Furthermore Spencer didn’t keep the weight off and came in out of shape. Molden worked hard actually got back on the field his problem was that he forced it too quickly. I have heard no prognosis that a full recovery is in question with Molden just that the type of injury he has was one that would take time.

He is not a rook, PERIOD. If you go draft a CB the same questions are there, there are no guarantees.

I have tendency to compare Molden’s situation more with Schuabs then Spencers. Schaub was called injury prone. He really isn’t it. Neither is Molden. Molden had one injury that takes about a full year to recover from, it was not as serious as DRobs or Spencers just takes time. If he returns 100%, which is projected, he is going to be really good CB. Of course he could get reinjured, but that can happen to anyone, I don’t think that he is per say injury prone, anymore then Schaub is. Schuab was labeled as glass because he took three hits that drew NFL fines and three of them were really dirty.

Reeves is a better cover corner then D Rob the last two years.

Again if DRob is F tagged he is one hundred percent in the drivers seat and that is just not something the Texans could or should of done IMHO. IF D Rob signs a big contract then they get a high sup pick anyway!